Which desert in Chile is the driest non-polar desert in the world?

The desert in Chile known as the driest non-polar desert in the world is the Atacama Desert.

The Atacama stretches along northern Chile between the Pacific Ocean and the Andes. Parts of the desert receive almost no measurable rainfall; some weather stations have recorded years without rain. Its extreme dryness results from several factors working together: the cold Humboldt Current, the subtropical high-pressure system, and rain-shadow effects from both the Andes and the Chilean Coastal Range.

The landscape includes salt flats, volcanoes, gravel plains, and mineral-rich terrain. Because the Atacama resembles Mars in its dryness and soil conditions, scientists have used it to test instruments and procedures for planetary exploration. It is also a major astronomical region because the high, dry air limits cloud cover and atmospheric moisture.

The Gobi, Namib, and Sahara are genuine deserts, but they are not the canonical answer to this superlative. The Atacama is specifically described as the driest non-polar desert; Antarctica’s McMurdo Dry Valleys are drier overall but are polar deserts.